Lower than expected kindergarten enrollment prompts changes at NCPS
Because of lower than expected enrollment at Nottawasaga Creemore Public School this fall, classes have been restructured and three staff members have been transferred to other schools.
The school population is down to 196 from 206 last year but the school also had a lower than expected enrollment of kindergarten students, which prompted the change.
“In terms of where we lost a class, it was the kindergarten numbers specifically,” said principal Alison Golding. “Our numbers are healthy everywhere else.”
Golding said with only 18 kindergarteners it wasn’t enough to staff a whole class so a kindergarten/Grade 1 split class was formed. Twenty-six kindergarten students were required to staff a class with a teacher and early childhood educator (ECE).
“That affected everything all the way up, every class except Grades 7 and 8,” said Golding.
She said overall, within the Simcoe County District School Board there was a gain in teachers but locally, the changes resulted in three educators being deemed surplus to the school.
Kindergarten teacher Heather Jeffery and ECE Jennifer McFarlane will be moving to a newly created kindergarten class at Cameron Street Public School in Collingwood and Nicole Stewart, who was at the school one day a week, has taken a full-time position in Wasaga Beach.
Golding said the declining enrollment is due in part to parents choosing to send their children, particularly younger students, to private schools in the area.
“Some people are choosing to send students outside of the public board and it’s harder to sustain the population here,” said Golding.
She said she is looking at the possibility of running a pre-school program out of the school in order to get families engaged.
“It’s about getting people into the school and making those connections before school, that school is a good place, and helping to facilitate that transition hopefully into our school,” said Golding.
A statement from the principal sent home this week said, “These changes have been carefully considered through discussions between myself and the staff who work closely with your children. In placing students, consideration is given to individual and group needs, strengths and learning styles of students, and the climate of the school as a whole. I believe that with the support and positive outlook of parents, guardians, and staff, all our students will adapt to these changes and have a successful year at school.”
